First Formula 1 training in Las Vegas canceled due to defective manhole cover

This was announced by the organizer of the Grand Prix after a track inspection by the motorsport premier class and the world motorsport association FIA. “The FIA, Formula 1 and the circuit’s engineering teams are actively working to review and resolve the issue.”

The second training session could not start on Friday at 9:00 a.m. CET as planned, but was scheduled two hours later, i.e. at 2:00 a.m. local time, according to initial information. “Of course we’ve been working on the sleep rhythm, which is getting a bit mixed up. But the drivers are fit and young, it’ll be okay,” said McLaren boss Zak Brown. The penultimate race of the season is scheduled for Sunday (7 a.m. CET/both live on ServusTV and Sky).

The opening training session for Formula 1 in Las Vegas was canceled after just 19 minutes. Carlos Sainz stopped his Ferrari just eight minutes after the start of the first session on the world-famous Las Vegas Boulevard after his car jumped over an obstacle and was shaken when it landed. The drivers were able to complete a maximum of five laps on the new course.

During a subsequent inspection on the so-called strip, it was discovered, according to the world motorsport association, that the concrete frame around a sewer shaft had failed. It was said that “all other manhole covers” now have to be checked, which will take some time. After the incident in front of the luxury hotel Bellagio, pictures showed how a marshal leaned over the narrow hole in the asphalt after the shaft cover had been removed.

The damage to the underbody, chassis and drive of Sainz’s car will “cost a fortune,” complained Ferrari team boss Frederic Vasseur. “We messed up the session for Carlos. We definitely won’t be there in FP2 (second free practice). That’s simply unacceptable for Formula 1 today.”

Questions about damage to the image of the premier motorsport class once again angered Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff. “We’re talking about a damn manhole cover in the first free practice session,” complained the Viennese. “Give some credit to the people who make this event possible.”

For Formula 1, this is a botched sporting start in the gambling metropolis. The Grand Prix in Las Vegas is the prestige project of the rights holder Liberty Media, with which they want to continue to grow in the US market. Normally the opening training lasts an hour. “It’s a huge shame that a small manhole cover can stop such an event,” said Austrian AlphaTauri CEO Peter Bayer on ServusTV.